ABOUT THIS ALBUM

"Kansas City producer / rapper / singer drops what may be this years sleeper hit." - FATCITY.CO.UK

"Miles Bonny's Smell Smoke is the first cd i received in a long time that i listened to more than once. check this album out right now! " -J Rawls

"I needed that soul/hop an you provided the fix. One of the best releases of 2006! People may not understand it at first, But once it sets in there heads will be blowin!" -Approach

"It's one of the most honest albums I've heard in a while. Musically and lyrically. The fact that I know you probably gives me the advantage of knowing how much of you is in this. This is the "NEW" music. It's exciting without being club and laid back without being neo-soul. "Garden" is a hit! Everytime is goes off I wish it was longer. Nobody's making music like this but they will soon. I think that what Approach said is true but that's the price you pay for being MILES AHEAD." -Joe Good

"I've been fortunate enough to "Smell Smoke?" and i immediately knew that Miles Bonny is on FIRE! Free, Ingenious, Revolutionary, Energetic." - JOC MAX

"'Smell Smoke?' is in the car, on the Bose... it refuses to leave the changer.. and for that matter.. it's hoggin up all the air-time... you gotta' little trouble-maker on yer hands there, bro :) It's a mad keeper!" - Lenny Hamilton

"Chances are you haven't heard of Miles Bonny yet, but you'll be hearing plenty for years to come. Repping Kansas City, Miles has spent years of perfecting his production, and has already earned plenty of respect amongst his peers (he's already worked with Sage Francis, Oh No, J. Rawls, Joc Max, and others). His first solo release "Smell Smoke" shows an incredibly diverse range, with its headlining act producing, rapping, singing, playing instruments, and doing all kinds of things that sound good in your speaker. Don't sleep." - FATBEATS.com

++++++++++++
Once again, Miles proves that you can listen to hip hop and not cringe while doing it.

"Smell Smoke" is the latest in what i believe is probably an endless cannon of beats from his repotoire (did i spell that correctly?), but this time, he's sangin'!

Well i'm not sure where to start except to say that Miles' mind is a playground, where beats, melodies, vibes, vibraphones, electronica, loops, obscure samples, feelgood messages, and all interpretations of funk and soul all bleed into each other, making for an interesting listening experience.

Highlights for me are:
"Cans Ass City Waltz" -He knows how much i dig this track! Imagine Koop, sped up a tad to an uptempo lounge type beat, interrupted by those odd samples...this is when he's at his absolute best.

"Stampede"- "Everybody stampede on the dance floor" says Miles, and with that one clarion call, a catchy hook is born, complimented by some awesome flute work (not sure if it's a sample or not, since Bonny DOES actually play Trumpet). This is some sleazy funk, made for big asses that know how to work it out!! Excellent!

"The Garden"-Another one of those "big booty" joints! Short in length (2:07), it's a jam that if you heard it in a club, you could not resist getting up to dance. A catchy chorus, and a rhyme by Miles, who slickly makes a reference to the "Feelsexy" night that he created and spins at in Kansas City, where he's from.

"Sing Your Song"-This is the last track on the cd that brilliantly holds everything together (along with "Cans Ass City Waltz"). Created with producer Joc Max (another of my Myspace friends). It's done extremely well, and could be a single, i think. "This is hooch music, it's made from home, can't you feel it right down to the bone?" sings Miles, in what is his finest vocal hour so far, at least to me. The jazzy swinging beat and Miles' steady verses keeps your feet tappin and soon after you find yourself singing along. Excellent production (surface static included)!

This is feel good music, get high music, music about being yourself, and embracing that self full throttle. It's fun, creative, and not weighty. The only track that stands out from this in a way, is "War Is The Enemy". Sonically, it's psychedelic and moody(think War's nugget "The World Is A Ghetto") with Miles' singing lyrics reflective of the times like "why do we have such issues with our government today? we all pay taxes, then we watch as they play...With war there is no winner"). It's kind of hard to make out what he's singing because of the echo and reverb going on, but the effects do work well in the song.

I would highly recommend this cd to anyone with an open ear who's into hip hop, soul, samples, loops, and fat beats!

Fusing soul and hip hop together and maintaining a comfortable palatability is challenging to say the least. While the two styles clearly make comfortable bedfellows, there is endless opportunity for flubbing: Too beat heavy, not enough feel, tributary but not a new thought to be found. Thankfully there's no half stepping here, as our man Bonny takes a break from his duties as chief super producer for Soundsgood and goes his own way, grabbing the reigns and riding high with a confidence that will be obvious to even the most casual of listeners. The sampling here is key, but it takes a back seat to straight up musicianship, showcasing a songwriting ability that is both ambitious and infectious, challenging yet comfortable. The songs are not strictly instrumental, but the vocals remain precise and necessary, with Bonny handling rapping and singing duties, kicking in at opportune moments to boost the presence of the instrumentation, which successfully echoes the days of old while keeping a foot planted on modern ground. If these dark months are leaving you spent and restless, here's your cure.

The Midwest has more talent than what people give it credit for having. And from Kansas no less. This album is one of the most funkiest albums of the decade. Is that an overstatement? Hell no! Miles Bonny (as with Sounds Good) has nothing less than brilliant production... and he can sing too. Buying this album is like, going to Macdonald's, ordering a number 1 (Big Mac), and going home to not only find your full meal.... but a Chipotle' burrito in their as well!

So in short.... buy this album! There's not too many folks out there keeping it THIS fresh....

Session Expiration Warning

Session Expiration

We need to talk.

The web browser you're using to surf the web is so old it’s embarrassing. But hey, we hope you consider us a friend, the kind of friend you can count on to tell you when there's spinach stuck between your teeth. So here it goes: every time you surf the web with that antiquated web browser it’s like you have spinach in your teeth. Every time you get online, spinach!

Look, we don't want you to be the butt of any more jokes when the sites you visit don't load or function properly. So please - for your own sake - click on one of the links for your preferred browser below, and get that spinach out of your teeth for good.